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> Office of the Provost > Student Outcomes Assessment > Background
Provost's Request for Assessment Plans
| To: |
Academic Deans and Department Heads with Undergraduate Majors |
| From: |
Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, John Drumheller |
| Date: |
February 27, 1995 |
| Re: |
Student Outcomes Assessment |
Assessment of student outcomes first emerged as a major topic of
discussion in higher education in the early 1980s, and all six
regional accrediting bodies now require it of their members.
The Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges (NASC) has increased
its emphasis on systematic assessment of educational programs in the
1996 edition of the Accreditation Handbook. Departments must now make
explicit the educational goals and objectives of each major,
systematically collect information to show that students who complete
the program have achieved those outcomes, and use the information
collected to develop strategies for improving teaching and learning.
This latest requirement by the NASC might be interpreted as "one more
thing" we have to do without additional resources, and to some extent
that is true. However, defining our learning expectations for
students and evaluating whether those expectations are being met are
basic responsibilities of any serious institution of higher learning.
In most departments, assessment is carried on as an informal process;
our task is to create more structure for that process.
Last August, I charged all academic deans and department heads to work
with the Assessment and Outcomes Committee to develop plans to meet
the accreditation standards for assessment. The committee undertook
an inventory to determine what assessment activities were being done
by departments and what capstone courses were being offered. I very
much appreciate your timely responses to the inventory. Dr. Joan
Wadlow, our evaluator from the NASC, was clearly impressed with the
amount of information submitted and gave our assessment efforts a
favorable review in her report.
The next step in our process is to develop assessment plans for each
department which meet the revised standard and to continue the process
of creating capstone courses in majors where they do not yet exist. I
am asking the Assessment and Outcomes Committee to collect
departmental assessment plans and monitor the development of capstone
courses in all our majors. I am calling a meeting of all department
heads and deans on March 19 from 1:30-3:00 in 319 Leon Johnson to
discuss these issues and give you an opportunity to respond. This is
an important issue for the university, so please call Pat Chansley at
4373 to let her know if you will be unable to attend. Departmental
faculty in charge of assessment are also welcome.
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